[Ed note: This article was edited on April 15 to reflect new information given, including the fact that only one spot was apparently warned, and that it isn't necessarily a townwide ban.]
Yesterday, it was reported that the city of Boston has been telling restaurants to stop selling grocery items if they don't have the correct permit, and now we have learned that another community in the local area has gone a similar route with a place in town as well.
According to a source, the Arlington Health Department has told a dining and drinking spot that it cannot sell groceries without the correct permitting and that it would need to apply for such a permit (which would apparently be some sort of food retail permit) in order to be able to do so. This is somewhat similar to what Boston is doing, as the Boston Inspectional Services is notifying restaurants that they cannot sell groceries unless they have what appears to be a Food Service Health Permit. It is not yet known if other restaurants and bars in Arlington have been warned about this, and it is also not known if the business in Arlington (or the ones affected in Boston) will try to appeal, especially considering that it would just be a temporary situation; if we hear of any developments on this front, we will post an update here.
According to a source within the town government in Arlington, this is not a townwide ban on restaurants being able to sell groceries, but it does appear that a restaurant can only do so if it has the correct permitting.
Some restaurants in the Boston area recently started to offer grocery items along with takeout/delivery options as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to ravage the local and national restaurant industry.
Thanks to Drew Starr for initially bringing this to our attention via the Friends of Boston's Hidden Restaurants Facebook group page.
[Earlier Article]
City of Boston Cracking Down on Restaurants Selling Grocery Items
by Marc Hurwitz (Also follow us on Twitter at @hiddenboston)
[A related post from our sister site (Boston's Hidden Restaurants): List of Restaurant Closings and Openings in the Boston Area]
